The Tri-Colour Classic: Harnessing Interfaculty Rivalry for Lifesaving Cancer Research
Commerce and Engineering students sparring over a basketball court for bragging rights.
It’s a premise that would be enough on its own to warrant significant ticket sales. To be frank, I’d be surprised if seats for this event do not end up being sold out.
Eager to begin a new tradition, a non-profit student committee is hosting the Tri-Colour Classic (TCC) at local Leon’s Centre, a basketball game fuelled by a historic interfaculty rivalry between Commerce and Engineering.
Historic rivalries stem from traditions past, and Queen’s University is entrenched in tradition, established in 1941 in a Royal Charter issued by Queen Victoria. The school calls Kingston home, the city that hosted the very first convening of Parliament after the Union of Upper and Lower Canada on June 14, 1841.
One can also find tradition amongst school faculties themselves. The Engineering faculty is known for their tradition, “slamming,” involving removing their leather jackets and slamming them onto the ground repeatedly. In addition to slamming, the Commerce faculty also engages in engineering traditions, including the Great Engineering Cheer Off with their Engineering counterparts, in which both faculties attempt to out-boast the other during orientation festivities.
Yet there is more to this basketball game than simply looking for another excuse to celebrate interfaculty differences.
As a non-profit charitable event, the TCC aims to reach $100,000 in donations, with $50,000 through ticket sales being donor-matched to Childhood Cancer Research. The TCC will directly send donations to the Mabbott Lab, based at The Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids).
Dr. Mabbott received his Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology at the University of Alberta. He is currently a psychologist, program head, and senior scientist at The Hospital for Sick Children, and a professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto.
The primary research objectives of the Mabbott Lab, headed by Dr. Donald Mabbott, are to:
Understand how perturbed brain development, primarily from pediatric brain tumours, manifests as cognitive impairment in children
Potentially harness neuroplasticity for recovery in children with brain injuries
By supporting the potentially lifesaving research at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, The TCC is hoping to use students’ school spirit in a way that can benefit young children now and for years to come.
To purchase tickets for the Tri-Colour Classic, and to help support fundraising for pediatric cancer research, click on the link here, and be sure to follow the TCC on Instagram for ongoing updates.
Read below for more details on the event.
Location: Leon's Centre, 1 The Tragically Hip Way, Kingston, ON K7K 0B4
Date: Thursday, September 22, 2022
Gates Open: 6:00PM EST
Game Tip-Off: 7:00PM EST